INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR LUCIANA CAVALLARO!

Luciana Cavallaro

Please help me welcome author Luciana Cavallaro to Jemsbooks.blog Segment of Interview an Author. 

1. Please tell us something about yourself.

Hi, my name is Luciana Cavallaro, and I am a first-generation Australian Italian. My parents migrated to Australian when they were both children in the 1950’s with their mothers. My grandfathers had immigrated years earlier to establish a home base in Western Australia.

I grew up in a country town, approximately one and half hours drive south of our capital city, Perth. I was the first in my family to go to university and studied to become a High School teacher. I live and teach full-time in Perth.

jjspina: I’ve always wanted to visit Australia. I have heard it is beautiful.

2. When did you know that you wanted to be an author?
   I used to write as a teenager but didn’t pursue it, I had difficulty with English as a subject, as Italian was my first language. I didn’t think I had the skills to write. It wasn’t until I had a car accident that I got back into writing, more as a way to deal with the depression and pain I had incurred. I was also teaching full-time and didn’t really pursue writing until my sister and I went on a Contiki tour of Europe and visited the Colosseum and the Roman Forum. I must say, that inspired me to write, plus I love ancient history and mythology, and that’s when I knew I wanted to be an author.

jjspina: I’m sorry to hear about your car accident. At least something good came out of that time and you developed your writing skills.

3. How do you come up with ideas for your stories?
   My trilogy, Servant of the Gods, has been germinating since the Contiki tour and tied in with my fascination of the Atlantis myth.
   Most of my ideas come from what I read and the documentaries I watch, such as Himmler’s penchant for artefacts and the dogged pursuit he went to find the most obscure objects in order to gain the upper hand against the allies.
   For my Accused Women novel, the idea came to me while in the shower, to tell the story of five women from Greek mythology and from their point of view. Women weren’t painted in the most favourable light back then, as the stories were told by men, so I wanted the women tell their story.

jjspina: It’s amazing to hear about how other authors muse works and where their inspiration comes from.

4. What projects are you currently working on?
   I have three writing projects on at present. The first is completing the trilogy, and I am focussing on finishing the first draft of Book 3 in the Servant of the Gods series. The next one is a novella series to do with a family heirloom that has unique and magical properties with links to Hitler and the Nazi regime. The first book is complete and I have teed up with an editor, and hopefully looking to a 2019 release. The third project I am working on is a bit of a challenge for me as it is a historical romance. This one is taking a little longer to write as romance is not a genre I write in. I am excited by this story as it set in Alexandria circa 350 CE.

jjspina: Best of luck with your new book. It’s good to get out of your comfort zone once in a while.

5. What hobbies do you have when you are not writing?
   I love to take photos, and not with the iPhone or other such device, but with a real camera. I treated myself to a DSLR Pentax and tripod. We recently went away to a small town about 3 hours south of Perth, where there are forests that have marri, jarrah and karri trees. It’s the only place on Earth where jarrah and karri trees grow, and to walk amongst these hundreds and thousands-year-old trees was beautiful. I took a lot of photos. It was the most peace I have felt in a long time, and the photos were wonderful, but one cannot do justice to mother nature. She’ll win every time.
   I love to read [weird I know 😉] and I read a wide range of books, including non-fiction. I don’t read erotica or scripted romance. I enjoy drawing, but don’t get time to sit and draw. I also like to get into gardening, planting vegies and weeding. There is something cathartic about pulling out weeds, it’s mindless but when you’ve completed an area, there is satisfaction that you cleared out the infernal pests from the garden beds.

jjspina: I’d love to see the photos of the jarrah and karri trees. I’ve never seen them before. Maybe on another guest post you can share them.

6. What is your target audience for your book?
   My target audience is 18 and up, and who enjoy a fast-paced adventure mixed with ancient history. My aim is to engage readers with the history of the world and hopefully after reading my books, will want to learn more about the ancient past and mythology. They still have a lot to teach us.

jjspina: I enjoy historical novels about the past and mythology. I am definitely over 18.

7. If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go?
   There are a lot of places I’d love to go, Europe is always a major pull for me, and if I was to prioritise my next destination, it would be Egypt and the Middle East. Though at present it isn’t safe, so next would be the USA, closely followed by South America. Or maybe the other way around… haven’t quite decided.

jjspina: I hope you get to travel to all those places one day, especially USA. I know you will love it for its wondrous beauty and diversity across our nation.

8. If you could have one wish, what would it be?
   My one big wish is to be a full-time writer and where I don’t need to supplement my income with working as well. I guess that is every writer’s wish. My other wish is to keep writing stories. 😊 Additionally and more importantly, I wish everyone in this amazing and beautiful world we inhabit, a harmonious life.

jjspina: I hope one day you will get your wish, Luciana. Thank you for the lovely wish for the rest of us. 

Luciana’s Books

Purchase Links:

Amazon https://www.amazon.com/Luciana-Cavallaro/e/B009QHIKN2/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1534754842&sr=8-1

Smashwords https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/Moirai

Bookbub https://www.bookbub.com/profile/luciana-cavallaro?list=author_about

Blog/website

www.luccav.com

Social Media Links;

Goodreads http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6567841.Luciana_Cavallaro

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/pages/Luciana-Cavallaro-Writer/304218202959903?ref=hl

Twitter https://twitter.com/ClucianaLuciana

Pinterest http://www.pinterest.com/chindamo/boards/

Thank you, Janice, for being a gracious host and for allowing me to intrude on your blog and nab your followers’ attention for a little while.

 It was my pleasure to have you here, Luciana, and learn more about you and your fascinating books. I will be checking them out soon.

Thank you, readers, for stopping by to read about this talented author. I hope you will take some time to peruse her books and links above.

REMEMBER: READING GIVES YOU WINGS TO FLY! SOAR ALL YEAR THROUGH WITH  JEMSBOOKS.COM! HAPPY READING!

Reading is good for your health! Please leave some love for authors by reviewing their books wherever you purchased them. We authors will love you back!

Blessings & Hugs!

Janice